One dead as fight leads to fatal shooting at North Carolina mall

Dec 24 (Reuters) - An armed male in a fight inside a mall
packed with Christmas shoppers in Charlotte, North Carolina, was
shot by an off-duty officer working security and died at the
scene on Thursday, police said.

The officer heard shots among two groups of people who got
into a fight and encountered the man, who pointed his weapon at
the officer, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Chief Kerr
Putney told a news conference. The officer shot the man.

It was not known if he had fired at the officer.

"This is not a random act of violence," Putney said of the
incident.

He did not identify the man who died, or the officer, who
has been placed on administrative leave, following police
protocol.

Putney added that the fight was not gang-related and said
weapons were found at the scene.

The mall was evacuated, but there was no continuing threat,
said Jeff Keith, deputy director of the Mecklenburg Emergency
Medical Services Agency.

"With all the things that have occurred in this country in
the past couple of years, we want to assure people that this is
an isolated, specific event, not of any random nature," he said,
without commenting on the reports of the death.

The incident took place near a shoe store on the ground
level, and at least two people were injured in a crush of people
trying to flee the scene, authorities said.